Did Raiders get another steal in undrafted free agent WR?

Kiper: “If he led the Raiders in catches in his second year, I wouldn’t be surprised. In the mold of a Wes Welker, he’s a technician with reliable hands. Make that tremendous hands, and he is the career receptions leader in the ACC.”

Raiders fans were immediately making the connection to last year’s undrafted steal Rod Streater and to Welker on Twitter and my e-mail when Vernon was signed. Vernon is 6-foot-1 and 200 pounds, while Welker is 5-9 and 185 — but he also went undrafted before becoming an All-Pro receiver for the Patriots.

Setting ACC records for career receptions (283) and receiving yards (3,749) during his senior season, Vernon had 85 catches for 1,074 yards and eight touchdowns during his final year with the Blue Devils. He went to the Senior Bowl, where he caught the eye of the Raiders coaching staff (on the North team) and quarterback Tyler Wilson — who was drafted by Oakland in the fourth round.

Wilson hit Vernon three times on the South team’s first offensive possession of the game (Vernon finished with four catches for 36 yards). The duo had been paired frequently in practice drills throughout the week.

“That first day of practice it was really different,” Vernon told the Duke Chronicle. “It was basically my first time being thrown to by a guy that was not (former Duke quarterback) Sean (Renfree) in four years. It was definitely a little different but by the end of the week we were feeling really comfortable with each other.”

The Raiders currenyly have nine receivers going to training camp, none with more than four years experience, after cutting Darrius Heyward-Bey in the offseason. Denarius Moore, Jacoby Ford, Streater and Juron Criner are the first four, and it’s wide open after that.